i read. i write. i think. i link.

The Baltimore Police Department Public Affairs Office The Washington Post has published an article which suggests that Freddie Gray injured himself while in police custody. The entire article is sourced from a police document and doesn’t name any names, including the prisoner supposedly giving the information. According to the Post, the document was provided to them under the condition that they not name the prisoner.

According to a police document obtained by The Post, a prisoner in a separate compartment of the same Baltimore police van as Freddie Gray told officers he heard Gray “banging against the walls.”

Just who is supposed to believe the information in this article? How can a man sever his own spine and crush his own vocal cords while handcuffed inside of a police van?

Did the guy on the other side of the wall get a deal? Did he think that possibly the thumping was the police beating Gray on the other side of the wall? If he couldn’t hear or see Gray (other than the thumping) how can he say for certain that was him on the other side of the wall?

There are so many holes in this story, and this piece is an example of the media spreading lies and propaganda for the police.

Then there’s this:

Batts has said officers violated policy by failing to properly restrain Gray. But the president of the Baltimore police union noted that the policy mandating seat belts took effect April 3 and was e-mailed to officers as part of a package of five policy changes on April 9, three days before Gray was arrested.

Gene Ryan, the police union president, said many officers aren’t reading the new policies – updated to meet new national standards – because they think they’re the same rules they already know, with only cosmetic changes. The updates are supposed to be read out during pre-shift meetings.

The previous policy was written in 1997, when the department used smaller, boxier wagons that officers called “ice cream trucks.” They originally had a metal bar that prisoners had to hold during the ride. Seat belts were added later, but the policy left their use discretionary.

So, using seat belts is discretionary, and they are admitting that the police don’t read or follow their own rules. Good job guys.

This article and the information contained is complete bullshit. Let’s continue to demand the facts. Police the police.